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Media

Be Good (Lion’s Song) – Gregory Porter

music video

“Be Good” is the first video from Jazz singer Gregory Porter’s critically acclaimed 2012 album of the same name.

Shot entirely on location in Baltimore, Maryland, director Pierre Bennu visually compliments Porter’s intense lyrics and smooth, soulful vocals with vibrant colors and whimsical storytelling, and sets it all against Charm City’s unique backdrop. As two lovers find each other amongst the everyday magic of their lives, Bennu creates a tender love story which draws on the power of vulnerability, the fear of rejection, and the yearning for love in what he calls a ‘lullaby for your inner child.’

Sun Moon Child

A video altar piece, celebration of cultural and expressive connections across the African Diaspora, & a tribute to black dance.

Created in 2007 by pierre bennu from archival and ephemeral footage.

This piece has been discussed socially and academically in relation to the evolving nature of copyright protections in a digital age, the cultural legacy of sampling and hiphop culture, and the creation of new meaning from existing material. It has been screened from YouTube to the Smithsonian.

Larry

A parable, song, and animation about the difficulties of communication.

And about astronomy.

And about the end of the world.

Lyrics and animation by pierre bennu. Music by Bran Nu Classics. 2006

Official selection, GenArt Film Festival, 2007.

Black Moses Barbie

In this piece, the inspiring legacy of Harriet Tubman, the historical figure, is translated into a commercial for a theoretical “Black Moses Barbie” doll, in order to examine and interrogate the gendered construction and marketing of heroism, violence, and play.

It spent a year in the “Homage to Harriet” exhibit at the Reginald F. Lewis Museum of African-American History and Culture in Baltimore, MD during 2013, and is now in their permanent collection.